Port Prosperity
Port Prosperity is the tenth-largest city in Hutori, the second-largest on the Green Sea, and the largest in Kenai. This article is about the Metropolitan Council of Port Prosperity, which contains the city and its suburbs–a total conurbation of over 21 million subjects. Port Prosperity is a politically important city, being home to the headquarters and major seat of support for the Union of Radical Republicans. The council also contains Port Unity, the largest seaport by tonnage in Hutori, although it is a close second in terms of income to the Port of Bekenial-Ulfried. Geography Port Prosperity is set amongst a series of low hills that surround the mouth of the Fal and its deltas. It is significantly less damp and marshy than the coastline to the north. History Before the arrival of Luthori colonists in southern Kenai, the mouth of the Fal was a major center for Mashacaran trade and fishing. While the cities that occupied the area were never as large or powerful as the Adelian mountain-cities with their impressive stonework, the seafaring cultures that emerged along the southern Kenai coast were able to navigate impressive distances, trading - and raiding - as far as Keris and Migadon. By the time Bekenial's men arrived on the far side of the Adelian mountains, the priest-oligarchy of Axa was the primary power in the area that is now Port Prosperity, having expanded along the River Fal over the previous century. However, this had overextended the power of the Axa, and by uniting local tribes against the Axa the Luthori were able to drive their influence back towards the mouth of the Athor Valley. Port Prosperity - then known as Easton - was one of the first non-indigenous settlements north of the Adelian Range. By the time Luthori immigrants were firmly established in the Athor Valley and along the Fel and Surrey Rivers, Port Prosperity, founded proper in 2023, had become the second-most important center for overseas trade in the colony. This was only aided as immigrants streamed north into the Maine and Carter valleys and spread out along the fertile lakeland of inner Kenai. By the end of the 21st century, Port Prosperity was the largest export station in Hutori by tonnage, mostly due to the agricultural production of the region. Further industrialization in the Athor Valley as well as along the Maine and Mazen only served to increase Port Prosperity's wealth, due to its position as the nearest warm-water port – St. John, at the mouth of the eponymous river, and the numerous port towns clustered around the mouth of the Maine often froze over from late November to mid-March. Port Prosperity grew with the rest of the nation, but its situation remained mostly unchanged until the late Lusk period, when slowing industrial and agricultural exports, combined with an exploding population, greatly reduced the amount of foreign trade leaving Port Union. During this period, much of the population of the city – then one of the largest in Hutori – spread out into the Wash and New Seritei, commuting extremely long distances by high-speed rail or even, in some cases, by telecommunications. Since the Restoration, Port Prosperity has again become an important hub of activity in Hutori – both economically, from the revitalization of the shipping industry, and politically, due to the city's strong ties to the reform and republican movements. Demographics Port Prosperity was once one of the largest cities in Hutori; now, it is only the tenth-largest. That said, the city does not follow the traditional pattern of a depopulated city. The population is, in fact, roughly five years younger than the averaged population of Hutori and nearly seven younger than the surrounding councils. This is generally accounted for by Port Prosperity's current status as a renewing urban area. Economy Unique for a council, much of the city's economic engine is dissipated throughout the satellite cities, which spill over into the Wash and New Seritei, with Egan and Mcshane being the most notable. The main industry in the city itself is shipping and, to a lesser extend, ship repair, with Port Unity employing nearly a hundred thousand in all. The city is also a major rail terminus and maintains a fairly small industrial processing core, mostly of canned and preserved foods, although much of this industry has moved outside the council limits since the start of the 29th century. Environment & Climate Port Prosperity is relatively warm for Hutori, aided by the currents of the Green Sea and the winds that blow down off the Adelian mountains; it is also cloudier than the average for the country. The continuous importance of the port has deeply damaged the local ecology, with Port Unity regularly ranking in the bottom three for water quality and health of marine life. This has led to a long decline of traditional local foods, including crabs (once plentiful in Prosperity Bay), salmon, and sea fish. Politics Port Prosperity has long been a hotbed of labor and radical politics; swinging from the CEP to the NSP to the Ultranationalists in Kingdom-wide elections, local politics have traditionally been divided between the Council of Free Tradesmen, a union-backed group, and challengers from the far left as well as more radical parties. Major Landmarks Unity Tower, the tallest building in Kenai, is an immense skyscraper of increasingly small pyramids – one of the last building projects before the current fad for arcologies, it is dwarfed only by the immense self-contained cities of Adelia. Category:Restoration Hutori Category:Kenai Category:Councils of Hutori Category:Cities of Hutori